Mr. Joy

Mr. Joy

By DANIEL BEATY

Not Currently Playing

Rosenthal Shelterhouse Theatre

About

SEPT. 23 - OCT. 22, 2017

Directed by NICOLE A. WATSON

What happened to Mr. Joy? A Harlem community is shaken when Mr. Joy, a Chinese immigrant whose shoe repair shop has been a neighborhood pillar for decades, is the victim of a sudden and violent attack. Through the lens of nine of Mr. Joy's customers – all brought to life by one actress – we learn the subtly profound and unassuming impact the shop owner has had on each of their lives. Poignant, thoughtful and stirring, Mr. Joy invites you to celebrate the power of the invisible ties that bind us all. Written by Playhouse favorite and Dayton native Daniel Beaty!

ADVISORY: Mr. Joy is appropriate for adults and older teenagers. The show is a depiction of individual hardships in an inner-city community of Harlem, New York, and contains adult language and realistic narratives describing violence.

RUNNING TIME:Mr. Joy runs approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes.

Promotional photo by Tony Arrasmith/Arrasmith & Associates.

Photos

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Debra Walton in Mr. Joy. Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography.

Videos

Artists

Debra Walton

Clarissa/Bessie/DeShawn/ John Lee/Rebecca/ Peter/Clifford/Ashes/James

Debra Walton

Debra was last seen at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park as Charlaine in Ain’t Misbehavin’ and as Tina Turner in Beehive. She is absolutely brimming with excitement in returning to perform Mr. Joy for you! Debra has been in search of and tracking Mr. Joy since she first heard of it back in 2013. She is not only thrilled but honored that she has been chosen to tell this story! Recent artistic adventures include playing Shirley in Priscilla Queen of the Desert and working with living legend Micki Grant on a production of Don’t Bother Me, I Can’t Cope at New York’s The York Theatre Company. Broadway and off-Broadway highlights include The Pajama Game, Storyville, The Bubbly Black Girl and Cookin’ at the Cookery: The Music and Times of Alberta Hunter, in which Debra created her award-winning roles that earned her a Drama Desk nomination and a Barrymore Award! She made her primetime debut on Blue Bloods. National tours include South Pacific, Annie Get Your Gun and Chicago, in which she played multiple roles including Mama Morton. For more fun facts, check out www.debrawalton.com, or on YouTube. Twitter: @DebWaltonActs. Instagram: @Debwaltonhill.

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Daniel Beaty

Playwright

Daniel Beaty

Daniel Beaty is an award-winning actor, singer, writer and community activist. He is the co-writer and lead actor of the upcoming feature film Chapter & Verse with Loretta Devine and Omari Hardwick about a man who re-integrates into society after eight years in prison. His critically acclaimed plays Through the Night, Emergency, Mr. Joy, Breath & Imagination and The Tallest Tree in the Forest – Paul Robeson, have been produced at leading theaters across the nation and venues ranging from Lincoln Center to the White House, garnering numerous awards including an Obie award for writing and performance and three NAACP Theatre Awards. A highly requested keynote speaker, Daniel has spoken throughout the U.S., Europe and Africa. In 2012, Daniel created I Dream, a nationally recognized social justice initiative that uses the tools of the arts, immersive group exercises and trauma recovery to support young people to rewrite the story of race and class inequity in America and create social justice projects to make that new story reality. I Dream has reached over 2,000 young people in three cities across the nation: Watts, CA; Omaha, NE; and Boston, MA. A graduate of Yale University (BA) and American Conservatory Theatre (MFA), Daniel has developed original TV shows for Showtime and Fox/Imagine, and recently completed a documentary about the impact of mass incarceration on children and families called Behind the Glass. A child of an incarcerated parent himself, Daniel’s poem “Knock Knock” is an Internet sensation receiving millions of views and has been made into a children's book, also titled Knock Knock, published by Little Brown Books. Penguin-Random House published his empowerment book Transforming Pain to Power in 2014.

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Nicole A. Watson

Director

Nicole A. Watson

Nicole is pleased to be making her Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut. Recent credits include the world premiere of Kara Lee Corthron’s Welcome to Fear City (Contemporary American Theater Festival), Las Meninas (A.C.T. Conservatory), The Merry Wives of Windsor (Two River Theater’s Little Shakespeare), The Great Society (Asolo Repertory Theatre), the world premiere of Kevin R. Free’s Night of the Living N-Word (New York International Fringe Festival), Our Lady of Kibeho (Smith College), Joe Turner’s Come and Gone (North Carolina School of the Arts), the world premiere of World Builders (Contemporary American Theater Festival), The Mountaintop (Kitchen Theatre Company) and the world premiere of Approaching Ali (Washington National Opera at The Kennedy Center). She is a member of The New Georges Jam and has worked with New Dramatists, The Lark, the Fire This Time Festival, The New Black Fest, Signature Theatre and Working Theater. She was a 2015 Artist-in-Residence at the Drama League, a 2013 Drama League Directing Fellow and the 2011 recipient of the League of Professional Theatre Women’s Josephine Abady Award. Visit www.nicoleawatson.com.

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Misha Kachman

Set Designer

Misha Kachman

Misha’s previous designs at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park include sets and costumes for Venus in Fur and Sex With Strangers. He has also worked at Arena Stage, Asolo Repertory Theatre, Baltimore Center Stage, The Kennedy Center, Milwaukee Shakespeare, Opera Lafayette, Royal Opera of Versailles, Pasadena Playhouse, Portland Center Stage, Round House Theatre, Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, Signature Theatre, Skylight Music Theatre, Studio Theatre, Syracuse Stage, Theater J and The Wilma Theater, among many other companies in the United States and abroad. Misha is a recipient of the 2013 Helen Hayes Award and a Company Member at Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company in Washington, DC. He is a graduate of the St. Petersburg Theatre Arts Academy. Misha serves as the Associate Professor of Scenic and Costume Design and Head of the MFA program in Design at University of Maryland. Visit www.mishakachman.com.

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Kenton Yeager

Lighting Designer

Kenton Yeager

Kenton has designed, produced or directed more than 600 productions during his career. He designed Peter and the Starcatcher, Ring of Fire: The Music of Johnny Cash and Venus in Fur at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. Theatre design credits include work for DCPA Theatre Company, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Arizona Theatre Company, Round House Theatre, Pioneer Theatre Company, Folger Theatre, Virginia Stage Company, Arden Theatre Company, Syracuse Stage, Asolo Repertory Theatre, PlayMakers Repertory Company, Clarence Brown Theatre Company, Great River Shakespeare Festival and American Music Theater Festival. He has designed concerts for Suzanne Vega, Dave Matthews, John Prine, They Might Be Giants, George Winston, The Kronos Quartet, Bobby McFerrin, The Roches and Stephane Grappelli. Kenton heads the master’s program in entertainment lighting design at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and has taught more than 100 master classes at more than 40 universities and workshops abroad. Foundational to all of his creative work and his teaching are his meditation and mindfulness practices. He is president of the American Meditation Society, a certified advanced practices meditation teacher, head of the Mindfulness Community of Scholars at UTK and runs three- and five-day meditation courses around the country.

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Amatus Karim-Ali

Sound Designer

Amatus Karim-Ali

Amatus is pleased to be making her Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park debut with Mr. Joy. As a sound designer and actress, she just finished scoring Daisy and Max, a documentary for Al-Jazeera America. She is working on a series of short films with UC Santa Cruz and Sundance exploring sound and image, as well as scoring duties for a new film series produced by AT&T. Cherished productions include the debut of Dominique Morrisseau’s Obie Award-winning play Sunset Baby, directed by Kamilah Forbes at Philip Seymour Hoffman’s Labyrinth Theater Company. Amatus has also been a part of and collaborated with artists Meshell Ndegeocello, Roy Hargrove and Andy Baldwin, and she has scored projects for PBS, Georgia Shakespeare Festival, 651 Arts, POV, Ford Foundation and Rooftop Films. Visit amatusart.com. Social media: @amatus23

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Stephanie Klapper

Casting Director

Stephanie Klapper

Stephanie is thrilled to continue her collaboration with Blake Robison and the Playhouse, having cast A Prayer for Owen Meany, Disgraced, A Christmas Carol, Jane Eyre, All the Roads Home and Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery last season, and Shakespeare in Love and Mr. Joy this season. Previously for the Playhouse, she cast The Secret Garden, Sex with Strangers, Mad River Rising, Native Gardens, The Revolutionists, To Kill a Mockingbird, Mothers and Sons, Bad Dates, Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Suicide Club, Safe House, Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical, Circle Mirror Transformation, Peter and the Starcatcher, Buzzer, Fly, Seven Spots on the Sun, Clybourne Park, 4000 Miles, Pride and Prejudice and A Delicate Ship, as well as Shipwrecked! An Entertainment, The Book Club Play, Leveling Up, Abigail/1702, A Christmas Carol, The Three Musketeers and The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead. Her work is frequently seen on Broadway, off-Broadway and regionally, as well as on film, television and the internet. She has many exciting projects running and upcoming both in New York City and regionally, as well as on film, the web and television. Stephanie is a member of the Casting Society of America and League of Professional Theatre Women.

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Andrea L. Shell

Second Stage Manager

Andrea L. Shell

Andrea is excited to be celebrating her 18th season with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, having worked on more than 85 productions. A highlight of every season for her is A Christmas Carol. Favorite Playhouse credits include Erma Bombeck, Disgraced; Bad Dates; The Revolutionists; Peter and the Starcatcher; I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti; The North Pool; Pride and Prejudice; The Trip to Bountiful; Merrily We Roll Along; As You Like It; Behind the Eye; The Understudy; Blackbird; Durango; Around the World in 80 Days; Altar Boyz; Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming; Reckless; Ace; The Clean House; A Picasso; One; Abracadabra (2002-2007); The Bible … (abridged); and Dark Paradise. Regionally, she stage managed The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead (Dallas Theater Center), Ace (The Old Globe), Lost Prospect (Ingenuity Festival of Cleveland), A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Nutcracker (Cincinnati Ballet) and Snow White and Beauty and the Beast (Cincinnati Ballet’s Otto M. Budig Academy). She also served as the production stage manager for the Jonesborough Repertory Theatre. Ms. Shell received her BA from East Tennessee State University. She would like to thank her family, friends, Dylan and Scott for their unending support.

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Events

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Preview Performances

Be among the first to see the show before opening night and save!
Preview performance tickets are discounted and begin at just $35. Not valid with other discounts.

Sept. 23 at 8 p.m.

Sept. 24 at 7 p.m.

Sept. 26 at 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

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Opening Night

Share the excitement of Thursday opening nights with a lively post-show cast party with complimentary hors d'oeuvres by Vonderhaar's Catering.

Sept. 28 at 7:30 p.m.

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Meet the Artists

Stay after select performances for a behind-the-scenes discussion with the cast and crew of Mr. Joy.

Oct. 1 at 2 p.m.

Oct. 8 at 2 p.m.

Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 19 at 7:30 p.m.

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Wine Pairing Dinner

Cost: $35

Join us before the Friday, Sept. 29, performance for a
special four-flight wine tasting accompanied by a four-course meal.
Dinner will begin promptly at 6:30 p.m. and end at 7:45 p.m. Reservations are required.

Creating Art for Social Change

Oct. 9, at 7 p.m.

Daniel Beaty's artistic mission includes using art as a tool to enact social change and to inspire citizens to become changemakers in their own community. Join local artistic organizations and performing and visual artists as they showcase their creative work that's driven to engage others in social issues. Featured artists will participate in a panel about their experiences, challenges and triumphs.

Join us on Monday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m. at the Playhouse. All Playhouse Perspectives events are free and open to the public, but registration is required. Please call the Box Office at 513-421-3888 to reserve your spot. The Playhouse Perspectives series is supported by a generous grant from Roderick and Barbara Barr.

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Workshop: Master the Craft of Oral Storytelling

Cost: $50

True Theatre of Cincinnati will host an oral storytelling workshop in conjunction with the Playhouse to help you find your compelling story and share it with others. Through a comprehensive, two-hour workshop, learn the essentials of oral storytelling that will engage listeners, initiate discussion and create a sense of community. Space is limited for this event.

Oct. 14, at 10 a.m.

On the Blog

Every Person Has a Story

Aug 29, 2017

Natalie Hulla

Written by Dayton-native playwright Daniel Beaty, Mr. Joy is a thoughtful drama that weaves together the personal narratives of nine different characters who unravel the mystery of Mr. Joy’s disappearance.

Speaking Truth to Power

Sep 15, 2017

Natalie Hulla

Before he made his Playhouse debut, playwright Daniel Beaty had been making waves in the arts community. In 2005, he performed an original, spoken word poem titled “Knock Knock” on HBO’s Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry. The poem, inspired his own upbringing, traces a son’s fractured relationship with his incarcerated father.

Storytelling that Makes an Impact

Oct 6, 2017

Natalie Hulla

MR. JOY playwright Daniel Beaty has built his artistic career on a foundation of social healing and transformation. Here’s a look at other artists and organizations who are working today to create meaningful art that aims to make a social impact.

5 Questions with Debra Walton

Oct 12, 2017

Natalie Hulla

Meet Debra Walton, who returns to the Playhouse in Mr. Joy, after having appeared in Ain't Misbehavin' and Beehive. Learn how Debra became an actor, what she loves about performing and what she's enjoying most about Mr. Joy.

Bringing Mr. Joy's Shoe Shop to the Shelterhouse

Oct 13, 2017

Natalie Hulla

Set Designer Misha Kachman and Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park Properties Manager John Gallagher share their artistic insight into bringing the highly detailed and realistic scenery of Mr. Joy to the Shelterhouse stage.